The Vans Warped Tour is about to spend its 18th summer trekking across America, and this year, there’s a new stage in tow: the Acoustic Basement presented by Full Sail University. It’s the first time that Full Sail has been a major sponsor of the popular festival, and besides presenting the stage, we’re also sending a Show Production graduate out to intern for the entire tour. Grad Ryan Luistro will be responsible for helping to set up the Acoustic Basement stage and run its sound board.

“One thing that drew me to this internship was that it’s not just one job,” says Ryan, who just graduated from Full Sail’s Show Production program last Friday. “You get to delve into a little bit of everything, from running audio to being in the trenches setting up the stage every day. I’m excited.”

The tented stage will provide a shaded space for acoustic acts to perform in a more intimate setting than on the larger main stages. Acts will rotate all summer and will feature music from the punk, indie, and folk genres. Some of the scheduled performers include Chuck Ragan (Hot Water Music), Brian Marquis, Anthony Raneri (Bayside), Vinnie Caruana (I Am the Avalanche), Mike Herrera (MxPx), and several others.

We’ll be following Ryan and the Acoustic Basement all summer long on the Full Sail Blog (plus giving away tickets on our Facebook and Twitter pages) with photos, video, weekly tour updates, and more. Warped Tour kicks off June 16 in Salt Lake City, Utah, and will make its way through Orlando on July 27. Check out the full list of dates below. 

2012 Vans Warped Tour:

• June 16, 2012 – Salt Lake City, UT (Utah State Fairpark)
• June 17, 2012 – Denver, CO (Sports Authority Field at Mile High)
• June 20, 2012 – Las Vegas, NV (Luxor Hotel Parking Lot)
• June 21, 2012 – Irvina, CA (Orange County Great Park)
• June 22, 2012 – Pomona, CA (Pomona Fairplex)
• June 23, 2012 – San Francisco, CA (AT&T Park Lot A)
• June 24, 2012 – Ventura, CA (Ventura County Fair)
• June 27, 2012 – Chula Vista, CA (Cricket Wireless Amphitheater)
• June 28, 2012 – Glendale, AZ (Camelback Ranch)
• June 29, 2012 – Las Cruces, NM (NMSU Practice Field)
• June 30, 2012 – San Antonio, TX (AT&T Center)
• July 1, 2012 – Houston, TX (Reliant Center Parking Lot)
• July 3, 2012 – Dallas, TX (Gexa Energy Pavilion)
• July 5, 2012 – Maryland Heights, MO (Verizon Wireless Amphitheater)
• July 6, 2012 – Auburn Hills, MI (The Palace of Auburn Hills)
• July 7, 2012 – Tinley Park, IL (First Midwest Bank Amphitheater)
• July 8, 2012 – Shakopee, MN (Canterbury Park)
• July 9, 2012 – Bonner Springs, KS (Sandstone Amphitheater)
• July 10, 2012 – Noblesville, IN (Klipsch Music Center)
• July 11, 2012 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH (Blossom Music Center)
• July 12, 2012 – Burgettstown, PA (First Niagara Pavilion)
• July 13, 2012 – Holmdel, NJ (PNC Bank Arts Center)
• July 14, 2012 – Montreal, QC (Parterre Ile Notre Dame at Parc Jean-Drapeau)
• July 15, 2012 – Toronto, ON (The Flats at Molson Canadian Amphitheater)
• July 17, 2012 – Darien Center, NY (Darien Lake Performing Art Center)
• July 18, 2012 – Scranton, PA (Toyota Pavilion)
• July 19, 2012 – Mansfield, MA (Comcast Center)
• July 20, 2012 – Camden, NJ (Susquehanna Bank Center)
• July 21, 2012 – Uniondale, NY (Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum)
• July 22, 2012 – Hartford, CT (The Comcast Theatre)
• July 24, 2012 – Columbia, MD (Merriweather Post Pavilion)
• July 25, 2012 – Virginia Beach, VA (Farm Bureau Live at Virginia Beach)
• July 26, 2012 – Atlanta, GA (Aaron’s Amphitheater at Lakewood)
• July 27, 2012 – Orlando, FL (Central Florida Fairgrounds)
• July 28, 2012 – West Palm Beach, FL (Cruzan Amphitheater)
• July 29, 2012 – St. Petersburg, FL (Vinoy Park)
• July 30, 2012 – Charlotte, NC (Charlotte Verizon Wireless Amphitheater)
• July 31, 2012 – Cincinnati, OH (Riverbend Music Center)
• August 1, 2012 – Milwaukee, WI (Marcus Amphitheater)
• August 4, 2012 – Redmond, WA (King County’s Marymoor Park)
• August 5, 2012 – Portland, OR (Rose Quarter Riverfront)